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Soccer Picks: Norwich City vs. Crystal Palace Tips & Odds

Two of the Premier League’s stragglers collide as Norwich City and Crystal Palace battle for desperately needed points. Here’s a primer on this clash, complete with soccer free picks.

Norwich
look for fourth win on the season

Just when the Canaries seemed to put some
distance between them and the humiliating 7-0 thrashing by Manchester City of a
few weeks ago, which made impressive headlines, they succumbed to another
defeat.

Norwich have only won three games through
12 laps of Premier League action, a fact that normally would prove costly in sports betting markets; that is, until
an even perceptibly worse opposite comes along as is the case here with Crystal
Palace apparently, their upcoming date in week 13.

Sportsbooks send Norwich into this clash at
the divine advantage, listed at -120 to win outright at Bet365. As if to suggest obliviousness to recent form that has
Norwich winning just one of their last five Premier League fixtures and conceding
a whopping 14 goals in the process, although skewed heavily by Man City’s
deposit.

After the Man City debacle, Norwich went
some way towards redemption by beating West Ham United 3-1 at home in week 11.
Unfortunately, for their followers, they just as quickly undid that positive
gain. On the back of a lacklustre 2-1 defeat to Newcastle United last week in
which the growing struggles on defence continued to be a glaring problem.

All told, the recent spate of
disappointments has caused a daunting dip in the table. They are in 16th
place with an abysmal 3-2-7 overall mark and a so-so 2-2-2 mark at home. Most
concerning, they are only a point clear of the drop zone.

It’s also worth mentioning that losses on
the pitch aren’t the only Norwich headlines making the rounds. News is rife
with the club’s financial losses and ominous predictions about further
financial storm clouds brewing on the horizon. None of which can make for a
positive atmosphere for the players or fans, indeed.

Tony
Pulis takes over Crystal Palace management

It’s been a grim start for Crystal Palace
this season and therefore it’s no wonder they are at the significant
disadvantage, listed at +320 to win
outright at Bet365 going into their clash with Norwich. Heck, even the draw
is tipped at rather large +260 soccer odds.

Crystal Palace have ushered in new manager
Tony Pulis, the so-called Mr. Clean of football, known for his ability and
success with cleaning up the mess and shaping up disorganized outfits. He’s best
known for his time with Stoke City and leading the Potters to the FA Cup final
where they finished runners-up to Man City in 2011.

On the back of his arrival to Crystal
Palace, the Eagles managed to clinch only their second victory on the season, a
narrow 1-0 victory against Hull City to extend their unbeaten record against
Hull to seven meetings and their league form to two unbeaten games in a row – an
eyebrow raising scoreless draw at home to Everton and a good road win over Hull
City. This positive turnabout lifts them from their perch at the bottom of the
table up to the dizzying heights of 19th spot but still has them
knee deep in the danger zone – not dead last is small consolation.

Overall, Crystal Palace boast a 2-1-9 mark
through 12 laps around the league, which includes a 1-0-5 road record. The most
concerning aspect on their travels is their inability to score and defend
particularly well – they have scored only three goals in six games on the road
and conceded 11, albeit 7 were deposited in just three games and by some of the
Premier League’s elite clubs this season. Put in that context, things might not
be so dire against Norwich after all.

Soccer
Betting Verdict: The problems with Norwich City
extend beyond the pitch, into the locker rooms and all the way up into the
boardroom. So concerning and distracting are they that it’s hard to ignore and
make us wonder whether the Canaries warrant such favourable odds at all. Crystal
Palace on the other hand seem to have been given a new lease on Premier League
life. Just in time for this decidedly winnable match one might add. They are
sporting positive form in their last two games and while it’s a long way up the
early signs under new management are encouraging. So much so that we’re
plumping down to the upset win by Crystal Palace, which is a tempting tickle at
+320 at Bet365. As well, we’re banking on the Under 2.5 as our value soccer pick at
-133.